Refrigerated transport temperature regulation

ABSTRACT

In an approach, a processor predicts a thermal load caused by a door opening event in at least part of a cargo space of a refrigerated transport vehicle based on, at least, an external ambient condition, environmental factors within the cargo space, and a duration of the door opening event. A processor obtains pre-cooling profile information describing cargo space temperature performance with a pre-cooling operation under conditions corresponding to, at least, the predicted thermal load caused by the door opening event. A processor determines a distribution path for the refrigerated transport vehicle based on the predicted thermal load caused by the door opening event and the obtained pre-cooling profile information, wherein the distribution path is associated with the pre-cooling operation.

BACKGROUND

A refrigerated transport is a means of carrying perishable products suchfruits, meats, vegetables, dairy products, pharmaceuticals, chemicalsand other things that need to be kept in controlled conditions. In arefrigerated transport, products will be contained in a cargo box andthe temperature within the cargo box will be kept within a predeterminedtemperature range to keep the products in a good-quality condition,dependent upon whether the products require a cool or frozenenvironment. Particularly, in the food industry, the refrigeratedtransport is an essential link in a food supply chain.

Usually, in refrigerated transport, energy consumption, such as powerconsumption, is relatively high due to varying ambiences, applicationtypes and operating cycles. Thus, energy saving becomes an importantproblem in many of refrigerated transport applications. Another concernis to maintain temperature integrity for the products, since violationsof temperature requirements could cause an undesirable quality loss ofproducts. In refrigerated transport applications, a traditional solutionof controlling temperature is a feedback based automation system, inwhich the air temperature representing a cargo box temperature ismeasured in real time and fed back to a controller to determineoperations of a refrigeration unit, for example switching therefrigeration unit on or off, or adjusting variable frequencies of therefrigeration unit. During a door opening event for product loading oruploading, the traditional feedback based automation system is closedand at that time one or more curtains are usually used, for example, atrear and/or side doors to prevent a sharp increase of temperature duringthe door opening event. Although this is an easily implemented way fortemperature maintenance and can prevent a sharp increase of temperatureto a certain degree, it is hard to maintain the temperature integrityfor the products since the temperature is still increased unavoidablydue to the door opening event.

SUMMARY

Aspects of an embodiment of the present invention disclose a method,computer program product, and computer system. A processor predicts athermal load caused by a door opening event in at least part of a cargospace of a refrigerated transport vehicle based on, at least, anexternal ambient condition, environmental factors within the cargospace, and a duration of the door opening event. A processor obtainspre-cooling profile information describing cargo space temperatureperformance with a pre-cooling operation under conditions correspondingto, at least, the predicted thermal load caused by the door openingevent. A processor determines a distribution path for the refrigeratedtransport vehicle based on the predicted thermal load caused by the dooropening event and the obtained pre-cooling profile information, whereinthe distribution path is associated with the pre-cooling operation.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a computer system which is applicable toimplement an embodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a method of refrigerated transport temperatureregulation according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3A is a diagram of example door opening events and undesiredtemperature responses in the door opening events according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3B is a diagram of example door opening events and undesiredtemperature responses in the door opening events according to anembodiment of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is a diagram of ambient temperature prediction according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5A is a diagram of example pre-cooling profile informationaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5B are diagrams of example pre-cooling profile informationaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of a proposed distribution path determinationaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a schematic diagram of an example criteria for proposeddistribution path determination according to an embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart of refrigerated transport temperature controlimplemented during the refrigerated transport according to an embodimentof the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of a system of refrigerated transporttemperature regulation according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Some embodiments will be described in more detail with reference to theaccompanying drawings, in which the embodiments of the presentdisclosure have been illustrated. However, the present disclosure can beimplemented in various manners, and thus should not be construed to belimited to the embodiments disclosed herein. On the contrary, thoseembodiments are provided for the thorough and complete understanding ofthe present disclosure, and completely conveying the scope of thepresent disclosure to those skilled in the art.

Referring now to FIG. 1, in which an exemplary computer system/server 12which is applicable to implement the embodiments of the presentinvention is shown. Computer system/server 12 is only illustrative andis not intended to suggest any limitation as to the scope of use orfunctionality of embodiments of the invention described herein.

As shown in FIG. 1, computer system/server 12 is shown in the form of ageneral-purpose computing device. The components of computersystem/server 12 may include, but are not limited to, one or moreprocessors or processing units 16, a system memory 28, and a bus 18 thatcouples various system components including system memory 28 toprocessor 16.

Bus 18 represents one or more of any of several types of bus structures,including a memory bus or memory controller, a peripheral bus, anaccelerated graphics port, and a processor or local bus using any of avariety of bus architectures. By way of example, and not limitation,such architectures include Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) bus,Micro Channel Architecture (MCA) bus, Enhanced ISA (EISA) bus, VideoElectronics Standards Association (VESA) local bus, and PeripheralComponent Interconnect (PCI) bus.

Computer system/server 12 typically includes a variety of computersystem readable media. Such media may be any available media that isaccessible by computer system/server 12, and it includes both volatileand non-volatile media, removable and non-removable media.

System memory 28 can include computer system readable media in the formof volatile memory, such as random access memory (RAM) 30 and/or cachememory 32. Computer system/server 12 may further include otherremovable/non-removable, volatile/non-volatile computer system storagemedia. By way of example only, storage system 34 can be provided forreading from and writing to a non-removable, non-volatile magnetic media(not shown and typically called a “hard drive”). Although not shown, amagnetic disk drive for reading from and writing to a removable,non-volatile magnetic disk (e.g., a “floppy disk”), and an optical diskdrive for reading from or writing to a removable, non-volatile opticaldisk such as a CD-ROM, DVD-ROM or other optical media can be provided.In such instances, each can be connected to bus 18 by one or more datamedia interfaces. As will be further depicted and described below,memory 28 may include at least one program product having a set (e.g.,at least one) of program modules that are configured to carry out thefunctions of embodiments of the invention.

Program/utility 40, having a set (at least one) of program modules 42,may be stored in memory 28 by way of example, and not limitation, aswell as an operating system, one or more application programs, otherprogram modules, and program data. Each of the operating system, one ormore application programs, other program modules, and program data orsome combination thereof, may include an implementation of a networkingenvironment. Program modules 42 generally carry out the functions and/ormethodologies of embodiments of the invention as described herein.

Computer system/server 12 may also communicate with one or more externaldevices 14 such as a keyboard, a pointing device, a display 24, etc.;one or more devices that enable a user to interact with computersystem/server 12; and/or any devices (e.g., network card, modem, etc.)that enable computer system/server 12 to communicate with one or moreother computing devices. Such communication can occur via Input/Output(I/O) interfaces 22. Still yet, computer system/server 12 cancommunicate with one or more networks such as a local area network(LAN), a general wide area network (WAN), and/or a public network (e.g.,the Internet) via network adapter 20. As depicted, network adapter 20communicates with the other components of computer system/server 12 viabus 18. It should be understood that although not shown, other hardwareand/or software components could be used in conjunction with computersystem/server 12. Examples, include, but are not limited to: microcode,device drivers, redundant processing units, external disk drive arrays,RAID systems, tape drives, and data archival storage systems, etc.

As mentioned hereinabove, in a refrigerated transport, curtains areoftentimes used to prevent a sharp increase of temperature of cargospace containing products to be distributed during a door opening event;however, the temperature is still increased due to the door openingevents. Thus, in embodiments of the present invention, an improvedsolution of refrigerated transport temperature regulation is provided,which takes a pre-cooling operation into consideration. Specifically, adoor opening load caused by a door opening event is predicted, and atthe same time pre-cooling profile information, which describes cargospace temperature performance with a pre-cooling operation underdifferent ambient conditions, is also obtained. Further through takingthe pre-cooling operation into consideration based on the predicted dooropening load and the obtained pre-cooling profile information, aproposed distribution path is selected for the at least part of therefrigerated transport Thus, during the refrigerated transport, it ispossible to perform, in addition to regular temperature control, atemperature regulation for the door opening event. Thus, temperaturerequirements in the refrigerated transport could be met better.Hereinafter, reference will be made to FIGS. 2 to 9 to describeembodiments of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart of a method 200 of refrigerated transporttemperature regulation according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure. This method can be performed in a controller which may belocated in respective transport vehicles or in a remote control centerof these transport vehicles. The controller can be implemented by acomputing device such as the computer system/server 12 as illustrated inFIG. 1, or by any other suitable computing device such amicro-controller, digital signal processor, etc.

In step 201, a door opening load is predicted. Particularly, the dooropening load can be predicted based on a predicted ambient condition, apredicted refrigerated condition and duration of the door opening event.

The term “door opening load” means a thermal load caused by a dooropening event. It can be appreciated that during a door opening event,the temperature in a cargo space for containing products to bedistributed will be increased due to a heat exchange between the outsideambience and the cool air in the cargo space. This will cause a thermalloss, particularly a cool energy loss. In the meanwhile, from a pointview of a refrigeration unit for cooling the cargo space, this thermalloss means a thermal load, which shall be addressed by the refrigerationunit. FIG. 3A illustrates a diagram 310 and FIG. 3B illustrates adiagram 320 of example door opening events and undesired temperatureresponses in the door opening events according to an embodiment of thepresent invention. The example door opening events occur at differenttimes and have different durations. From these figures, it is clearthat, during the normal refrigerated transport, the temperature changesaround a set point (0 degrees Celsius, for example), while during thedoor opening events, the temperature is increased greatly, which means athermal loss. For different opening events, the thermal loss isdifferent. This thermal loss caused by a door opening event is a kind ofan additional infiltration load for the refrigeration unit and thus isalso referred to as the door opening load.

The thermal loss is caused due to the heat exchange between the outsideambience and the cool air in the cargo space and thus, the door openingload is related to the ambient condition, the refrigerated condition,and the duration which the door opening event lasts for.

The term “ambient condition” means a condition in the outside ambience(i.e., the environment outside the cargo box), which may include one ormore ambient factors affecting the thermal loss. Examples of the ambientfactors may include, but are not limited to, temperature, humidity,environment density, wind speed and so on. However, the actual ambientcondition during the door opening event cannot be obtained until thedoor opening event actually occurs and thus a predicted value of theambient condition can be used. In an embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the predicted ambient condition can be information providedby a specific prediction application like a meteorological predictionapplication, which could predict the ambient factor (such as thetemperature, humidity, environment density, wind speed and the like) infurther hours based on current measurements. Thus, if the ambientcondition at a certain time point is required, it is possible to obtainthe predicted value of the ambient condition directly from the specificprediction application or from a storage device which stores predictionresults of ambient condition. In another embodiment of the presentinvention, the predicted ambient condition can be obtained by performingan ambient condition prediction. For example, the ambient condition innext few hours can be obtained based on the current measurements andhistory measurement records by means of various prediction methods suchas trend extrapolation, exponential smoothing, autoregressive integratedmoving average (ARIMA) predictions, moving average method and so on. Bythis means, it may obtain the predicted ambient condition as well.

For illustration purposes, FIG. 4 is a diagram 410 of ambienttemperature prediction, particularly a diagram of ambient temperatureprediction, according to an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG.4, the solid curve denotes the measured temperature and the dash linedenotes the predicted temperature, wherein the ambient temperatureprediction is performed by means of one of the above-mentionedprediction algorithms, such as the trend extrapolation. From the Figure,it can be seen that predicted values of the ambient temperature couldsubstantially follow the actual temperature measurements. For otherambient factors such as the humidity, the environment density, the windspeed, and the like, it can obtain similar predicted values by means ofsimilar methods.

The refrigerated condition means environmental factors inside the cargobox could also affect the door opening load. These factors can include,for example, temperature, humidity, environment density, thermal energyand so on. However, different from the ambient condition, therefrigerated condition usually varies within a predetermined range. Forexample, for a certain product, the temperature will be maintainedwithin a predetermined temperature range. Thus, the medium value, theupper bound or the lower bound of the predetermined temperature rangemay be roughly taken as the predicted temperature value. For otherfactors like the humidity, the environment density, and the like, thepredicted values can be obtained in a similarly way. The thermal energyis a parameter associated with products. Generally, the thermal energyof a substance at T ° C. indicates a heat quantity required byincreasing the temperature of the substance per unit mass from 0° C. toT ° C. Different products usually have different thermal energy and thusthe thermal energy herein can be obtained based on the products to betransported . . . .

Based on the predicted ambient condition and the predicted refrigeratedcondition during the door opening event, it may obtain per unit valuefor the door opening load, for example, a value for a door opening loadper second.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the per unit value for thedoor opening load may be obtained by for example, a general thermal lossequation as follows:

$\begin{matrix}{{\overset{.}{Q}}_{door} = {0.221{D\left( {h_{amb} - h_{z}} \right)}{\rho_{z}\left( {1 - \frac{\rho_{amb}}{\rho_{z}}} \right)}^{0.5}({gH})^{0.5}F}} & (1)\end{matrix}$

wherein {dot over (Q)}_(door) denotes a per unit value for the dooropening load caused by a door opening event; D is a constant whichrepresents a thermogenesis coefficient, h_(amb) denotes a humidityoutside the cargo box for containing products to be transported; h_(Z)denotes a humidity inside the cargo box; ρ_(amb) denotes an environmentdensity outside the cargo box; ρ_(z) denotes an environment densityinside the cargo box; g denotes the gravitational acceleration; Hdenotes the thermal energy of products; and F denotes a temperature ofthe ambient outside the cargo box.

By means of this equation, it may obtain the per unit value for the dooropening load. It shall be appreciated that the equation is provided onlyfor illustrative purposes and the present disclosure is not limitedthereto. In fact, it is possible to use any other suitable equations toobtain the per unit value for the door opening event. For example, moreor less factors can be considered in determining the per unit value.

Further based on the duration of the door opening event, it is possibleto determine the door opening loads caused by respective door openingevents. The door opening load is a function of the corresponding perunit door opening load and the duration of the door opening event. Forexample, for certain per unit door opening load, the door opening loadand the duration of the door opening event can be in a linearrelationship. In such a case, a corresponding door opening load can bepredicted by multiplying the per unit load-opening load at thecorresponding ambient condition and the refrigerated condition with thetime length of the door opening event. Moreover, it can be understoodthat the door opening load and the duration of the door opening even mayalso have a nonlinear relationship.

Hereinabove, the description is made to a single door opening event. Ina case where there are a plurality of door opening events, the aboveprocedure can be repeated so as to obtain door opening loads for therespective door opening events.

Referring back to FIG. 2, in step 202, the pre-cooling profileinformation may be obtained. The precooling profile information hereindenotes the cargo space temperature performance with pre-coolingoperations under different ambient conditions, such as differenttemperatures, humidities, environment densities, and/or wind speeds. Inan embodiment of the present invention, the pre-cooling profileinformation could be information stored in a storage device, which isobtained in advance by real experiments under various ambientconditions. Alternatively, the pre-cooling profile information may beobtained through a system simulation. For example, a system model can beestablished based on a real cargo space, operation properties of therefrigeration unit, affection of the ambient condition on the cargospace temperature, and the like. The ambient condition can be, forexample, input parameters, and the output may be, for example, changesof the cargo space temperature over time. Thus, different ambientparameters can be input to obtain temperature changes over time withpre-cooling operations under different ambient conditions. It is to beunderstood that the system model can be built by considering a greateror fewer number of factors or by replacing some factors with otherfactors.

FIG. 5A illustrates an example 510 of the pre-cooling profileinformation under a given pre-cooling condition according to anembodiment of the present disclosure, wherein T_(amb) indicatesdifferent ambient temperatures. The given pre-cooling condition means agiven pre-cooling capability, for example, a given cooling power and/ora given rotation speed of a compressor of the refrigeration unit. Asillustrated in FIG. 5A, the pre-cooling profile information shows thetemperature changes from the 5° C. to 4° C. under different ambienttemperatures. From FIG. 5A, it is clear that for different ambientconditions, the pre-cooling operation results in different cargotemperature performances. As an alternative option, it is possible touse any of other forms to represent the pre-cooling profile information.FIG. 5B illustrates another example of the pre-cooling profileinformation according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. InFIG. 5B, the pre-cooling profile information is expressed in a form oftable 520, which illustrates the time required by the pre-coolingoperation if the cargo space is cooled from 5° C. to 4° C. underdifferent ambient temperatures. It is to be understood that thepre-cooling profile information, as illustrated in FIGS. 5A and 5B, aregiven only for illustrative purposes and the present invention is notlimited thereto. In fact, it is possible to use any other forms torepresent the pre-cooling profile information or the re-coolinginformation can be obtained by considering more factors such ashumidity, environment density and so on.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the pre-cooling profileinformation may be further obtained by considering thermal capacitanceof products to be transported in the refrigerated transport.

In one embodiment, the temperature change of the products in the cargospace, i.e.,

$\frac{{dT}_{product}}{dt},$

can be expressed as follows:

$\begin{matrix}{\frac{{dT}_{product}}{dt} = \frac{{\overset{.}{Q}}_{product}}{({MC})_{product}}} & {{Equation}\mspace{14mu} (2)}\end{matrix}$

wherein {dot over (Q)}_(product) denotes the heat absorbed or dissipatedby the product; M in (MC)_(product) denotes the molar mass of theproduct; C in (MC)_(product) denotes the specific heat capacity of theproduct.

From the equation (2), it is clear that the temperature change of theproducts is associated with the thermal capacity of the products, whichmeans that the temperature performance is different for different kindsof products. For example, for the ice creams and strawberries, thetemperature performance will be quite different when the pre-coolingoperation is performed under the same conditions. Thus, it will beadvantageous if the pre-cooling profile information is obtained byconsidering the thermal capacity of the products since it will help toimprove system energy efficiency. In another embodiment of the presentdisclosure, the obtained pre-cooling profile information could bemodified and adjusted based on the thermal capacity of the products soas to consider different performances caused by different kinds ofproducts.

After the door opening load and the pre-cooling profile information areobtained, in step 203, a proposed distribution path can be determinedbased on the door opening load and the pre-cooling profile information,wherein the proposed distribution path is associated with a pre-coolingoperation proposal. The term “distribution path” used herein is a pathalong which a transport vehicle travels to distribute products and“proposed distribution path” is a distribution path that meetsrefrigeration requirements with the pre-cooling operation and isselected as a suggested distribution path. The pre-cooling operationproposal is a proposal for a pre-cooling operation with which a proposeddistribution path can meet refrigeration requirements. Thisdetermination of the proposed distribution path can be implemented bytaking the pre-cooling operation into consideration during selecting adistribution path. For example, the determination of proposeddistribution path can be performed by using a traditional path searchingalgorithm while considering the pre-cool operations. The commonly usedpath searching algorithm may include, but is not limited to, a Dijkstraalgorithm, Shortest Path Faster Algorithm (SPFA), Johnson algorithm andany other suitable algorithm.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of proposed distribution path determinationaccording to an embodiment of the present invention. As illustrated inFIG. 6, in step 601, an embodiment of the present invention may firstperform a distribution path determination by means of for example theDijkstra algorithm to select the shortest distribution path. Then indecision 602, an embodiment of the present invention may further checkwhether temperature requirements can be met when the pre-coolingoperation is considered before the door opening event. Particularly, anembodiment of the present invention may first determine a required timelength of a pre-cooling operation based on the pre-cooling profileinformation and the predicted door opening load. It is to be understoodthat the predicted door opening load denotes the cool energy to besupplied by the pre-cooling operation and the pre-cooling profileinformation denotes the cargo temperature performance under differentambient conditions when the pre-cooling operation is performed. First,by means of the ambient condition when the door opening event is tooccur, an embodiment of the present invention can determine acorresponding cargo temperature performance at that ambient conditionfrom the pre-cooling profile information. Then based on thecorresponding cargo space temperature performance with the pre-coolingoperation and the predicted door opening load (i.e., the cool energy tobe supplied by the pre-cooling operation), the required time for thepre-cooling operation can be obtained. If the proposed distribution pathcannot meet a requirement on the time length (decision 602, “NO”branch), this distribution path can be abandoned and the method goesback to step 601 and tries another distribution path. If thedistribution path meets the requirements on the time length (decision602, “YES” branch), the method proceeds with step 603, in which thisdistribution path can be selected as the proposed distribution path.

As an alternative option, it is also possible to check the distributionpath through a system simulation. For example, the cargo spacetemperature change with the pre-cooling operation can be simulated underusing the predicted ambient condition, the predicted refrigeratedcondition, the pre-cooling profile information, the predictive dooropening loads and the like, as system parameters of a suitable systemmodule. In the meanwhile, an embodiment of the present invention can seta selection criterion for the proposed distribution path to checkwhether a distribution path shall be selected as the proposeddistribution. If the temperature change for a distribution path meetsthe selection criterion for the proposed distribution path, thedistribution path can be determined as the proposed distribution path;otherwise, the distribution path may be abandoned and anotherdistribution path will be checked.

For illustrative purposes, FIG. 7 illustrates an example 710 of criteriafor the proposed distribution path determination according to anembodiment of the present invention. As illustrated in FIG. 7, there isset a temperature range with lower and upper bounds, if the simulatedcargo space temperature goes beyond either the upper or lower bound asillustrated in FIG. 7, the distribution path will be abandoned;otherwise the distribution path will be determined as the proposeddistribution path in step 603.

In an embodiment of the present invention, in selecting the proposeddistribution path, the pre-cooling operation can be considered based onthe thermal capacity of product to be transported. As describedhereinbefore, for different kinds of products, the cargo spacetemperature performance is different and thus it will take differenttime to achieve a desired temperature. Thus the pre-cooling profileinformation may be obtained through considering the capacity of theproduct and, in such a case, the cargo space temperature performancecorresponding to the ambient condition and the thermal capacity ofproduct can be selected from the pre-cooling profile information.Therefore, the duration of the pre-cooling operation can be determinedfrom the cargo space temperature performance selected based on thethermal capacity of the product and accordingly, the system energyefficiency may be further improved.

In such a way, it is possible to obtain a proposed distribution path,which could meet temperature requirements in the refrigerated transport.In fact, in a case where there are a plurality of distribution pathswhich could meet temperature requirements, one of the distribution pathwhich could further achieve the optimal energy efficiency can bedetermined as the proposed distribution path. Thus, during therefrigerated transport, the product distribution can be conducted alongthe proposed distribution path and with pre-cooling operation proposalassociated with the proposed path.

As described hereinabove, in selecting the distribution path,pre-cooling operations are considered, particularly the time length ofthe pre-cooling operations are determined. This means the proposeddistribution path are associated with specific pre-cooling operations.The Information on the pre-cooling operations associated with theproposed distribution path will be used to perform the pre-coolingoperations in the refrigerated transport. Detailed description of thepre-cooling operation will be made with reference to FIG. 8, which is aflowchart of refrigerated transport temperature control implementedduring the refrigerated transport according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure.

As illustrated in FIG. 8, the regular temperature control is performedin step 801. The regular temperature control may be a baselinehysteretic temperature control to maintain the temperature inside thecargo space in a predetermined range. The temperature control may be forexample a Proportion Integration Differentiation (PID) control, or useany other suitable control strategies. In decision 802, an embodiment ofthe present invention determines whether the next door opening event isto occur soon. For example, an embodiment of the present invention maydetermine whether there is a predetermined time length before anupcoming door open event. The predetermined time length may be a valueranging from, for example, 5 to 10 minutes. If it is not close to theupcoming door opening event (decision 802, “NO” branch), the method goesback to step 801 and continues the regular temperature control. On theother hand, if it is close to the next door opening event (decision 802,“YES” branch), an embodiment of the present invention determines whetherthe pre-cooling operations shall be performed in step 803. As mentionedhereinabove, for the proposed distribution path, there are pre-coolingoperations associated therewith. Thus, before each of the door openingevents, an embodiment of the present invention will perform theassociated pre-cooling operation for a predetermined time length.Particularly, in decision 803, an embodiment of the present inventiondetermines whether it is time to start the pre-cooling operation basedon the information on the pre-cooling operation associated with the dooropening event. For example, if the information on the pre-coolingoperation associated with the door opening event shows that thepre-cooling operation shall last for 4 minutes, an embodiment of thepresent invention will determine, in decision 803, whether there is only4 minutes left before the door is to be opened. If an embodiment of thepresent invention determines that there is not time to start thepre-cooling operation (decision 803, “NO” branch), then the methodcontinues to step 801. If an embodiment of the present inventiondetermines that there is time to start the pre-cooling operation(decision 803, “YES” branch), then in step 804, an embodiment of thepresent invention may send a pre-cool signal to the refrigeration unitso that a compressor of the refrigeration unit can run at a high speedto pre-cool the cargo space. In decision 805, an embodiment of thepresent invention determines whether the door opening event starts, orin other word, whether the door is opened. If an embodiment of thepresent invention determines that the door opening event has notstarted, (decision 805, “NO” branch), the method continues thedetermination, for example, after several seconds; otherwise (decision805, “YES” branch), the method proceeds to step 806, in which an OFFsignal is sent to the compressor to turn the refrigeration unit off.Afterwards, in decision 807, an embodiment of the present inventionwaits until the door opening event ends. If the door opening event ends(decision 807, “YES” branch), a pre-cooling signal is sent to therefrigeration unit to turn on the compressor (step 808) and the methodgoes back to step 801 and continues the regular temperature control. Insuch a way, the refrigerated transport temperature can be controlled byperforming the pre-cooling operations so as to provide complementarytemperature regulation for the refrigerated transport.

However, it is to be understood that the operations described withreference to FIG. 8 are given only for illustrative purposes and thepresent disclosure is not limited thereto. For example, step 802 can beomitted, and/or the sending of OFF signal in step 806 can be triggeredby the expiration of the duration of the pre-cooling operation insteadof the door opening event, or by any of them.

In addition to the method described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 8,there is also provided a system of refrigerated transport temperatureregulation in the present disclosure. The system, comprise one or moreprocessors; a memory coupled to at least one of the processors; a set ofprogram instructions stored in the memory and executable by at least oneof the processors to cause the system to preform operations of a methoddescribed with reference to FIGS. 2 to 8. For simplification purposes,detailed description will be omitted and for details about theseoperations, reference can be made description regarding FIGS. 2 to 8.

In addition, a system of refrigerated transport temperature regulationin the present disclosure is further provided, which will be describedwith reference to FIG. 9. The system 900 can be performed in or as acontroller which may be located in a respective transport vehicle or ina remote control center of the transport vehicle. The controller can beimplemented by a computing device such as the computer system/server 12as illustrated in FIG. 1, or by any other suitable computing device sucha micro-controller, digital signal processor, etc.

Reference is made to FIG. 9, which is a block diagram of a system ofrefrigerated transport temperature regulation according to an embodimentof the present disclosure.

In the embodiment as shown in FIG. 9, the system 900 includes a loadprediction module 910, an information obtainment module 920, a pathdetermination module 930, a condition prediction module 940, anoperation determination module 950, and a signal sending module 960. Theload prediction module 910 may be configured to predict a door openingload caused by a door opening event in at least part of a refrigeratedtransport based on a predicted ambient condition, a predictedrefrigerated condition and duration of the door opening event. Theinformation obtainment module 920 may be configured to obtainpre-cooling profile information describing cargo space temperatureperformance with a pre-cooling operation under different ambientconditions. The path determination module 930 may be configured toselect a proposed distribution path for the at least part of therefrigerated transport by taking the pre-cooling operation intoconsideration based on the predicted door opening load and the obtainedpre-cooling profile information to perform temperature regulation forthe door opening event.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the path determinationmodule 930 may be further configured to determine the proposeddistribution path as a distribution path which could meet temperaturerequirements in the refrigerated transport. In an alternative embodimentof the present disclosure, the path determination module 930 may befurther configured to determine the proposed distribution path as adistribution path which could further achieve an optimal energyefficiency.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the path determinationmodule 930 may be configured to taking the pre-cooling operation intoconsideration further based on thermal capacitance of products to betransported in the refrigerated transport. In such a way, the systemenergy efficiency can be further improved.

In a further embodiment of the present disclosure, the system 900 mayfurther optionally comprise a condition prediction module 940,configured to predict an ambient condition during the at least part ofthe refrigerated transport so as to obtain the predicted ambientcondition.

In a still further embodiment of the present disclosure, the pre-coolingprofile information may be obtained through a system simulation.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the system 900 mayfurther optionally comprise: an operation determination unit 950 and asignal sending module 960. The operation determination unit 950 may beconfigured to determine whether it is to perform a pre-cooling operationbased on information on the pre-cooling operation associated with theproposed distribute path. The signal sending module 960 may beconfigured to send a pre-cooling control signal to a refrigeration unitused for cooling a cargo space in response to the determining that it isto perform the pre-cooling operation.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the operationdetermination unit 950 is optionally configured to operate when it isclose to a next door opening event.

In a further embodiment of the present disclosure, the system 900 may beoperated again in at least one case of the predicted ambient conditionbeing updated and an actual distribution path in the refrigeratedtransport being changed.

It is to be understood that the modules shown in FIG. 9 can beimplemented by various manners, including software, hardware, firmwareor a random combination thereof. For example, in some embodiments, oneor more modules can be implemented by software and/or firmware.Alternatively or additionally, the system 900 can be implementedpartially or completely based on hardware. For example, one or moremodules in the system 900 can be implemented as an integrated circuit(IC) chip, an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a systemon chip (SOC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), and the like.

The present invention may be a system, an apparatus, a device, a method,and/or a computer program product. The computer program product mayinclude a computer readable storage medium (or media) having computerreadable program instructions thereon for causing a processor to carryout aspects of the present invention.

The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that canretain and store instructions for use by an instruction executiondevice. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but isnot limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device,an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, asemiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of thecomputer readable storage medium includes the following: a portablecomputer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), aread-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROMor Flash memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a portablecompact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD),a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such aspunch-cards or raised structures in a groove having instructionsrecorded thereon, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. Acomputer readable storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construedas being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freelypropagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagatingthrough a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulsespassing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signals transmittedthrough a wire.

Computer readable program instructions described herein can bedownloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computerreadable storage medium or to an external computer or external storagedevice via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, awide area network and/or a wireless network. The network may comprisecopper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wirelesstransmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/oredge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in eachcomputing/processing device receives computer readable programinstructions from the network and forwards the computer readable programinstructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium withinthe respective computing/processing device.

Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations ofthe present invention may be assembler instructions,instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions,machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions,state-setting data, or either source code or object code written in anycombination of one or more programming languages, including an objectoriented programming language such as Smalltalk, C++ or the like, andconventional procedural programming languages, such as the “C”programming language or similar programming languages. The computerreadable program instructions may execute entirely on the user'scomputer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone softwarepackage, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computeror entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario,the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through anytype of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide areanetwork (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer(for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider).In some embodiments, electronic circuitry including, for example,programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), orprogrammable logic arrays (PLA) may execute the computer readableprogram instructions by utilizing state information of the computerreadable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry,in order to perform aspects of the present invention.

Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference toflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus(systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of theinvention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented bycomputer readable program instructions.

These computer readable program instructions may be provided to aprocessor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, suchthat the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computeror other programmable data processing apparatus, create means forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructionsmay also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can directa computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or otherdevices to function in a particular manner, such that the computerreadable storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises anarticle of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects ofthe function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram blockor blocks.

The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto acomputer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other deviceto cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer,other programmable apparatus or other device to produce a computerimplemented process, such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement thefunctions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in theflowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof code, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). It should also be notedthat, in some alternative implementations, the functions noted in theblock may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, twoblocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantiallyconcurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverseorder, depending upon the functionality involved. It will also be notedthat each block of the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, andcombinations of blocks in the block diagrams and/or flowchartillustration, can be implemented by special purpose hardware-basedsystems that perform the specified functions or acts, or combinations ofspecial purpose hardware and computer instructions.

The descriptions of the various embodiments of the present inventionhave been presented for purposes of illustration, but are not intendedto be exhaustive or limited to the embodiments disclosed. Manymodifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skillin the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the describedembodiments. The terminology used herein was chosen to best explain theprinciples of the embodiments, the practical application or technicalimprovement over technologies found in the marketplace, or to enableothers of ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodimentsdisclosed herein.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method comprising: predicting, by one or moreprocessors, a thermal load caused by a door opening event in at leastpart of a cargo space of a refrigerated transport vehicle; obtaining, byone or more processors, pre-cooling profile information describing cargospace temperature performance with a pre-cooling operation underconditions corresponding to the predicted thermal load; and determining,by one or more processors, a distribution path for the refrigeratedtransport vehicle based on the predicted thermal load and thepre-cooling profile information.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein thedistribution path meets temperature requirements associated with cargoof the cargo space.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the pre-coolingoperation is further based on thermal capacitance of one or moreproducts located within the cargo space.
 4. The method of claim 1,wherein: predicting the thermal load is based on an external ambientcondition; and the external ambient condition includes temperature,humidity, and wind speed.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein thepre-cooling profile information is based on a simulation of temperaturechanges with the pre-cooling operation under conditions corresponding tothe predicted thermal load.
 6. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: determining, by one or more processors, to perform thepre-cooling operation based on the pre-cooling profile information; andcausing, by one or more processors, a refrigeration unit, of therefrigerated transport vehicle, to cool the cargo space based on thepre-cooling operation.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein determining toperform the pre-cooling operation is further based on a predeterminedtime before occurrence of the door opening event.
 8. A computer programproduct, the computer program product comprising: one or more computerreadable storage media and program instructions stored on the one ormore computer readable storage media, the program instructionscomprising: program instructions to predict a thermal load caused by adoor opening event in at least part of a cargo space of a refrigeratedtransport vehicle; program instructions to obtain pre-cooling profileinformation describing cargo space temperature performance with apre-cooling operation under conditions corresponding to the predictedthermal load; and program instructions to determine a distribution pathfor the refrigerated transport vehicle based on the predicted thermalload and the pre-cooling profile information.
 9. The computer programproduct of claim 8, wherein the distribution path meets temperaturerequirements associated with cargo of the cargo space.
 10. The computerprogram product of claim 8, wherein the pre-cooling operation is furtherbased on thermal capacitance of one or more products located within thecargo space.
 11. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein:predicting the thermal load is based on an external ambient condition;and the external ambient condition includes temperature, humidity, andwind speed.
 12. The computer program product of claim 8, wherein thepre-cooling profile information is based on a simulation of temperaturechanges with the pre-cooling operation under conditions corresponding tothe predicted thermal load.
 13. The computer program product of claim 8,further comprising: program instructions, stored on the one or morecomputer readable storage media, to determine to perform the pre-coolingoperation based on the pre-cooling profile information; and programinstructions, stored on the one or more computer readable storage media,to cause a refrigeration unit, of the refrigerated transport vehicle, tocool the cargo space based on the pre-cooling operation.
 14. Thecomputer program product of claim 13, wherein the program instructionsto determine to perform the pre-cooling operation is further based on apredetermined time before occurrence of the door opening event.
 15. Acomputer system, the computer system comprising: one or more computerprocessors, one or more computer readable storage media, and programinstructions stored on the one or more computer readable storage mediafor execution by at least one of the one or more computer processors,the program instructions comprising: program instructions to predict athermal load caused by a door opening event in at least part of a cargospace of a refrigerated transport vehicle; program instructions toobtain pre-cooling profile information describing cargo spacetemperature performance with a pre-cooling operation under conditionscorresponding to the predicted thermal load; and program instructions todetermine a distribution path for the refrigerated transport vehiclebased on the predicted thermal load and the pre-cooling profileinformation.
 16. The computer system of claim 15, wherein thedistribution path meets temperature requirements associated with cargoof the cargo space.
 17. The computer system of claim 15, wherein thepre-cooling operation is further based on thermal capacitance of one ormore products located within the cargo space.
 18. The computer system ofclaim 15, wherein: predicting the thermal load is based on an externalambient condition; and the external ambient condition includestemperature, humidity, and wind speed.
 19. The computer system of claim15, wherein the pre-cooling profile information is based on a simulationof temperature changes with the pre-cooling operation under conditionscorresponding to the predicted thermal load.
 20. The computer system ofclaim 15, further comprising: program instructions, stored on the one ormore computer readable storage media for execution by at least one ofthe one or more computer processors, to determine to perform thepre-cooling operation based on the pre-cooling profile information; andprogram instructions, stored on the one or more computer readablestorage media for execution by at least one of the one or more computerprocessors, to cause a refrigeration unit, of the refrigerated transportvehicle, to cool the cargo space based on the pre-cooling operation.